The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
.png&width=60&height=60&type=webp)
Mississippi State
Rebels Drop Tight Match With Mississippi State 3-0
11/2/2005 | Volleyball
Nov. 2, 2005
Box Score
OXFORD, Miss. - Ole Miss (7-18, 1-11 SEC) drew on the energy of a home crowd of almost 300 on Wednesday night in a showdown with Mississippi State (12-9, 3-8 SEC), but it wasn't enough to push the Rebels over the top as Ole Miss fell to the Bulldogs 3-0 (28-30, 24-30, 24-30).
Statistically, the Rebels played well and the scores went toe-to-toe with the Bulldogs, but timely miscues hurt Ole Miss in the end as Mississippi State escaped with the season sweep and the tight win.
Nikki Hill returned to early season form for the Rebels, hitting .316 and tallying 18 kills for Ole Miss to go along with consistent offensive leader Jaclyn Toohey, who tallied 12 kills as she hit .458 for the night. Freshman middle blocker Emily Jones also got in on the action with six kills but a team-best .556 hitting percentage.
"We played at a higher level tonight than we have been, and it was good to see that down the home stretch," said Ole Miss head coach Joe Getzin. "Unfortunately, we have not been able to sustain that level all season, and tonight we just came up short. It was a well played match, but you have to give credit to Mississippi State for handling a hostile crowd. They made the difference with their serving."
The Bulldogs tallied a total of eight service aces on the night in a match that was decided by a combined total of 14 points. Ole Miss committed nine service errors on their side of the match, proving to be the difference in a win and a loss.
Rachel Cooper, a senior for the Bulldogs led Mississippi State with 14 kills, while Orshi Kriegel added 11 kills for the visiting team.
The Rebels out-blocked the Bulldogs 7-to-5 on the night, as Jones came up with three block solos and two block assists to lead Ole Miss.
The first game started out with the Rebels in solid control of the match, pushing ahead of the Bulldogs by a slim margin, but holding the lead without much trouble. At 7-2, though, Mississippi State made a push and closed the gap to one. From then on out, it was a battle as both teams fought for early control. Mississippi State took the first game by the slightest of margins, taking game one 30-28.
The second game was all Bulldogs as Mississippi State took a solid attack and converted at an astounding .536 hitting percentage. The Rebels hit .312 for the second game, a feat that would normally win a game for a team, but Mississippi State was too much, taking the second game 30-24.
The third game saw Ole Miss come out and out-hit the Bulldogs in what looked like early would be the Rebels' game. It wasn't to be for Ole Miss, as despite a .324 hitting percentage in the third game and a series of powerful kills from Hill still weren't enough to get the win over a feisty Bulldog team. Mississippi State took the match with a 30-24 win in game three.
Ole Miss closes out home play this season with a pair of matches in the Gillom Sports Complex this weekend. The Rebels will host LSU on Friday night at 7 p.m. before playing the final match of the home schedule against Arkansas at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday.
